Call it instant gratification! I wrote my previous post just as i was finishing Future Shock (Toffler). I decided to start his second book: The Third Wave right away. The book starts with a dissection of current political systems! I will reproduce an analogy presented by Toffler:
Political systems, when viewed from an engineer's viewpoint, provide us with unprecendented understanding of the elites (representatives in power). In engineering there are 2 kinds of processes: Batch flow & continuous flow
In a batch flow process the machine works intermittently. Once a batch is produced, it waits idle till raw material for the next batch is provided. Whereas, in a continuous flow process the machine works without any break, as raw material is feeded continuously, and hence the results are also produced continuously.
Using this analogy, Toffler says that Democracy (the process of electing representatives) is like a batch process. It takes place at given intervals of time, between which the voters are unable to influence the power mechanism. However, influence groups are a continuous process. They work with those in power on a daily basis, thus modifying the results for their benefits. Also, this means that the power system is closer & more accessible to an influence group (being in close & daily contact), than to the democratic electorate.
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